“Go and enjoy the food,” Caleb says, gesturing to the fresh platters.
Ben, her husband, claps his hands together. “You don’t have to tell me twice, come on you,” he says, reaching for Wendy’s hand and steering her away. She waves over her shoulder and giggles at whatever he just whispered into her ear.
I can’t help but smile. This really does seem so surreal. I glance at Noah, who gives me a knowing look that silently says,I told you so. And he was right, of course, but nothing isever guaranteed, and I’ll never take things like this for granted. Having our nearest and dearest come to support me means so much.
Octavia sent me a massive bouquetof flowersand a bottle of Laurent-Pierre Cuvée Rosé in celebration, as she could not be here tonight—such a lovely gesture and very much appreciated.I was extremely intimidated when we first met; not only was she already friends with Caleb and Noah, she’s stunning, confident, and demure. If I didn’t trust Caleb and Noah implicitly, I might have been worried. But she’s so much more than her appearance. She’s gracious, kind, and has a way of empowering you. She’s also the owner of Formidable—an exclusive sex club—and CEO of a multi-million-pound business. So, I guess, in my own way, it was important for her to like me. I wanted to make a good first impression. It meant a lot, the guys bringing me into their inner sanctum, it further cemented our relationships.
After months of wearing Caleb down to take me to the club, I finally got to meet her, and now I consider her a friendtoo.
My lips lift into a big smile when I glance to my left.
“You came,” I say, turning to approach Lily and her guys. Lily is in a relationship with Jackson, Elliot, River, and Tommy. It just so happens that Elliot is also Noah’s ex, much to Caleb’s chagrin, but I think he’s slowly thawing towards him now. I may not have met Elliot and the guys under the best circumstances,but they’re part of our inner circle now, which, of course, includes Lily, who is now one of my closest friends.
“Of course. Congratulations, this is amazing!” Her grey eyes sparkle with sincerity.
My face heats as Caleb pulls my wrist gently, stopping me from chewing on my thumbnailagain. “Sweet girl, stop it. Everything is perfect,” Caleb says as he wraps my hand in his.
“Thank you for coming. We really appreciate it,” Noah says, his palm going to the small of my back.
Avery, Lily’s best friend, catches my attention as I glance over Lily’s shoulder. She approaches our group, a champagne glass poised between her fingers. Much like with Lily, Avery is another woman I have come to adore and couldn’t be more grateful to have each of them in my corner.
“Avery, you look amazing.”
She smirks. “You never know, I might meet Prince Charming,” she says, leaning in to greet everyone with a kiss on each cheek.
Mason’s head appears over the sea of guests.
“Oh good, my brother’s here,” I say, excitement filling my tone. “You can finally meet him,” I say to Avery. Goodness knows I’ve mentioned him enough.
“Mason, you already know everyone else, but this is Avery,” I say as he joins us.
Avery looks up at him with a smile, ready to greet him, but it slips the moment her eyes connect with his.
“What the actual fuck?” she says, her harsh tone surprising me.
“Siren,” he replies with a grin.
What the hell?What am I missing?
“Do you know each other?” I ask,confused by their odd exchange.
Avery looks positively pissed when she replies, “Unfortunately, yes.” Her eyes narrow at Mason with animosity.
“Careful, anyone would think you had a thing for me,” he retorts, seeming unfazed andclearlytrying to get a reaction.
I swear she looks ready to punch that smirk right off his face, and I can’t say I blame her. “That would require me to know your name is Mason and not, in fact, Daniel. If you’ll excuse me, Jessica, I think I just saw Mr Tall Dark and Handsome with my name written all over him.”
We’re rendered speechless as she sashays away and directly to Aaron, one of the guys from Caleb’s office, and wastes no time sparking up a conversion.
I raise an eyebrow and stare at Mason, words forming on my lips, but he holds up his hand, stopping me. “I’ll fill you in later. I need a drink.” He turns on his heels, his shoulders tense, and walks in the opposite direction of Avery.
“Hmmm, I wonder what that was about,”I say, more to myself than to the guys.
“No idea, but I’m pretty sure we’ll find out soon enough,”Caleb says.
I glance at Lily, who shakes her head subtly like she has no idea.
“You know, curiosity killed the cat,”River says with a smirk.
